Arsenal vs Everton Player Ratings: Aubameyang proves decisive in Emirates thriller

Everton won a staggering 19 aerial duels compared to Arsenal’s eight, but couldn’t capitalise at the Emirates despite taking the lead in the opening minute. A 3-2 victory saw Arsenal move above Everton in the table in improve their chances of a late push for Champions League football...

Arsenal – 6.83 

Bernd Leno – 6.6: Looked lost at sea for the opening goal within the first minute. Then, was at fault for the second goal, with the ball slipping between his legs.  

Redeemed himself with a tremendous save from point-blank range in the 71st minute. Second half performance made up for the first half, with his sweeping crucial to keeping Everton at bay.  

Hector Bellerin – 6.5: An assured performance at right-back, with a pass completion of 81%. Caught out of position on the break at times, but proved fruitful in attacking build up play.  

Dani Cellabos – 6.9: A crunching tackle in the 54th minute had the Emirates on their feet. Lucky to escape a booking around 10 minutes later. Pulled the strings until coming off.   

Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang – 8.6: Clear man of the match performance, grabbing two goals. Calm and composed finish following a long through ball from David Luiz. Added another just 27 seconds into the second half. Two shots on target resulted in two goals for the striker.  

Nicolas Pepe – 7.5: Teed up Aubameyang with a simple header to assist Arsenal’s third of the evening. Lost possession on three occasions, but showed flashes of dynamic attacking.  

Shrokdan Mustafi – 7.3: Despite conceding twice, a calming influence to Arsenal’s back four. Four aerial duels won, which was second behind Calvert-Lewin (9).  

Mesut Ozil – 6.6: A plethora of the kind of touches we came to expect from Mesut Ozil, pulling the strings in midfield in both halves. Showed flashes of brilliance and linked up well with forwards. 92% successful pass rate, which was in the top five individual players.  

David Luiz – 6.1 Individual error in the lead up to the first goal. Made up for that with a raking assist for Arsenal’s second goal before half time in a vintage Luiz display. 

Eddie Nketiah – 7.7: Scored Arsenal’s first from an inch-perfect assist from Bukayo Saka. Managed three shots in total, two of which were on target. Also won two aerial duels.  

Sead Kolasniac – 5.8: Subbed off in the 18th minute. Missed an attempt on the 13th minute, failing to convert his headed effort from Dani Cellabos’ corner.  

Granit Xhaka – 6.7: Not as bullish as we’ve come to expect; quiet game for the feisty midfielder, but he completed more dribbles (3) than any player on the pitch. 

Subs:  

Bukayo Saka – 7.0: Instant impact after replacing Kolasniac, grabbing an assist for Nketiah, his 10th competitive assist of the season, which is the most of all Arsenal players. Lucky to escape a booking for a cynical challenge on Richarlison.  

Lucas Torreira – 6.2: Showed grit and determination after coming on, adding some much needed steel to Arsenal’s midfield.  

Matteo Guendouzi - 6.2: Came on with 10 minutes to play, but made little impact. 

Everton – 6.56 

Jordan Pickford – 5.4: Not a good day at the office for the England international, conceding three and making three saves.  

Mason Holgate – 6.1: Struggled to contain Arsenal’s attacking talent. Was chasing shadows for the majority of the game and failed to get tight.  

Leighton Baines – 6.9: Everton's standout defensive player, who marked his man well. Won two of his aerial duels.  

Richarlison – 7.8: Everton’s attacking maestro ran the show for large parts of the game. Booked on the cusp of half time for a late challenge. Grabbed Everton’s second just minutes later, following a mistake by Leno.

Looked dangerous throughout with four shots.  

Fabian Delph – 6.6: Hooked on the 81th minute after a rather lacklustre display, failed to make any kind of impact on the game.  

Dominic Calvert-Lewin – 8.1: Stand-out performance. Spectacular acrobatic effort within the first minute to put his side ahead, grabbing the earliest goal Everton have scored all season since Tom Davies vs Southampton. 

Huge chance to grab the equaliser in injury time, with his header going agonisingly wide. Most aerial duels won in the match, with a staggering nine (9).  

Gylfi Sigurdsson – 6.3: On the fringes of the match for the majority, and failed to make any kind of real impact offensively. Booked for a challenge with 20 minutes left in the game.  

Yerry Mina – 6.7: One assist collected for the Colombian, setting up Richarlison’s strike. Two tackles and three aerial duels won for the centre back.  

Alex Iwobi – 6.5: Huge chance inside the first 10 minutes, but failed to convert. Apart from that, struggled to make an impact on his return to the Emirates. Subbed after 60 minutes.  

Morgan Schneiderlin – 6.0: Received the first booking of the game on the 30-minute mark. Subbed off in the 60th minute, failed to protect Toffees’ back four.  

Djibril Sidibe – 6.7: Had a tough time dealing with the quartet of Arsenal attackers, although locked down his position well at times. Caught in possession twice, which was the third-most of any player.

Subs: 

Andre Gomes – 6.0: Skipped past Dani Ceballos with a lovely little turn on his return to action. Looked back to full match fitness. Booked in the dying embers of the game for a cynical challenge on Aubameyang.  

Bernard – 6.6: Replaced Iwobi on the 60-minute mark. Looked tidy in possession with a pass success rate of 95%. 

Moise Kean – 6.1: Fabian Delph’s replacement as the game teetered out. Failed to make an impact after coming on.